Liquidtight flexible conduit is used in many applications, including industrial applications, to protect electric current-carrying wires. The wires, which may be bare or covered by insulation, are pulled through the conduit which is typically tubular and has an axial bore. As such, the wires contained in such conduit may be protected from the environments in various applications. Externally, the conduit may be smooth or convoluted.
Various electrical connectors for connecting flexible conduit to electrical components and for providing a liquidtight seal thereto are known. Connectors of this type may be formed of metal, plastic or both metal and plastic. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,842,548 issued to Bolante on Jun. 27, 1989 shows an all-plastic connector while U.S. Pat. No. 3,659,880 issued to Goldsobel on May 2, 1972 shows a connector with portions made of plastic and metal. In addition to these known devices, in an effort to provide a liquidtight seal against chemical or liquid environments in industrial applications and to enhance the pull-out resistance of the flexible conduit from the connector, various other known connector constructions have been developed. For instance, connectors having flexible fingers, conduit engagement portions with screw threads for attachment to conduit, gripping serrations or teeth and deformable wedges are all known. However, in addition to considering cost as well as providing a reliable liquidtight seal with high conduit pull-out resistance, difficulties in field use must also be addressed. For example, it is not uncommon that the liquidtight conduit be cut by a user to have an irregular or ragged end surface. Such irregular end surface, if not seated properly in the connector, may result in a poor liquidtight seal. Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a connector that can accommodate such irregular conduit cuts and yet provide a suitable liquidtight seal.